Mother Writer

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Dang, I have been so unmotivated to write since I got back from Wyoming. I've been blogging regularly and figuring out how to get more traffic, which is like a full-time job. Don't get me started on issues with having BlogHer ads and not being able to do paid reviews. Otherwise, it's summer so I've just been ...

Sending a kid off to his first year of sleepover Scout camp.

Turning 41 (one kid is hiding)

Watering plants and flowers and the garden.

Tackling festering projects.

Watching my oldest child turn 11.

Seeing my husband off for more out of town fun.

Going to the pool.

Reading.

Having a party for my son (husband out of town ... sad face).

I know I have to get out my Christmas story queries to the nationals but single-ish parenting is kicking my ass at the moment. Then there's that kitchen wall I have to sand and spackle and sand and paint. Plus the 100 degree weather in the Midwest.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

It's Saturday morning and I'm out of town with my family. My husband has been working in Wyoming, so we came with him for what has turned into almost 5 weeks. We were woken up early because we're staying on a ranch and there are issues with the water and the water pump thingies are housed in The Lodge, where we are staying. The Lodge is a 4-bedroom house basically!

Anyway, instead of going back to sleep I left 2 1/2-year-old Sam in bed sleeping with his dad and came down to write. I have a good book I'm reading, but I want to write. The Real Housewives of somewhere are probably on, but I go immediately to the laptop!

Truth be told, I'm reinstating this blog so I can write about writing and find writing friends. My other blogs, The Kerrie Show (parenting humor) and Make Money to Write About Your Kids (goes along with my ebook which helps people get published in parenting markets), won't let me talk about my personal writing journey all the time, so I have come back here!

So let's talk about writing. I'll answer any questions you have.

P.S. I'm actually messing around trying to get blog traffic ... Klout, Blog Train, Bloggers.com, Scribnia, and a zillion more. Is there no end to places to list your blog? And does your traffic increase? Guess I'll let you know!

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Sorry I haven't been around much ... busy working on the other blogs and getting published in 75 places and making money for things like kid activities and new glasses and a root canal and 2 crowns! Life sneaks up on you financially and before you know it you are writing for money and not necessarily for the love of writing, ya know?

Then there's that little thing I do called homeschooling 3 kids while wrangling 2 more all day long, sometimes with a traveling husband.

Wouldn't it be nice to have just like 1 more hour in the day when you could work on whatever writing project you wanted to? Memoir, novel, essay, humor, script, poem?

If you haven't been over to Get Published in Parenting and Family Magazines yet and you are a writer mama, you hafta go! The ebook price has been cut in half, so it's only 10 bucks, and you get hundreds of markets. Plus I'm adding new ones to the blog all the time for NADA, NOTHIN', FREE!

Friday, July 22, 2011

It’s funny how articles often start as one idea or theme and then they tell you which way they want to go instead. I started a piece about Lessons Grandparents Teach and had things like patience, downtime is good, older can be cool, etc.

It wasn’t flowing and wasn’t making sense, but other ideas were coming, so I just typed them up to see if there was a common theme I could run with. I ended up with a piece about things grandparents can do with or for their grandkids … like go on a nature walk turning over rocks and looking for bugs, teach a skill, bake something.

After I found what it wanted to be, it flowed and was easy to write.

As a bonus, it turned out to be an homage to my kids’ 6 grandparents, as well, and I felt proud of it.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

I know, I know, I'm a bad mother writer. I'm spending all my time writing and submitting and working on my other blogs. I'll try to update you more often on what I'm working on so we can talk about it.

Today I sent out my first endorsement request for my ebook about getting published in parenting and family magazines. I hope to send out a bunch more in the weeks to come. I'm hoping endorsements and good comments from professional writers will help sell my ebooks since I really think it's a helpful resource.

I also submitted 2 stories to 2 different Chicken Soup for the Soul upcoming books (see http://getpublishedparentingmags.com for a link to the opportunities).

This week I'll be working on shaping some queries for nationals. I have 35 regional articles under my belt and 60 publishing credits, so I think I need to move on to some other stuff now. I'll have to mass-submit queries to the nationals and hope to get a bite!

I also hope to get some things on writing in some writing magazines and online sites.

Oh, and there are those other ebooks that are telling me they want to be written.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Yeah, I know I have five actual children. I love every single one of 'em, too. Sometimes, though, I liken my articles and essays to children. The writing process is often like growing a baby and going through labor. When a piece is published, it's like the excitement of childbirth. I'm not trying to take away from the miracle of having children; just saying you can be passionate about two things at once (or three, if you count your spouse!).

Friday, April 16, 2010

But maybe just not all at the same time. Or maybe you focus on one aspect of your life (family) while chugging away SLOWLY at your writing career. Maybe you choose instead to flip that scenario, hire a full-time sitter and go full-force at your writing career.

Where are you at right now? Do you think you have it all? Do you get frustrated that there aren’t more hours in the day?